The Cunning Nerve
by Alli97nomel
Summary: Sequel to THE BRAVE AMBITION: This is the story about the blonde without a Dark Mark and the raven without a scar.
1. Prologue

_Okay so, hi. This is the sequel to the Brave Ambition and I know it has been ages since I finished it but I just felt and urge to start this up. I'm really nervous because I'm going in blind here and I hope this turns out okay. So, here it goes. _

**THE CUNNING NERVE**

_PROLOGUE:_

What defines a person? Is it their skin colour? Is it the language they speak? The friends that they choose? Is it who they love? Is it the experiences that they have had? The choices that they make? Where they live? What clothes they choose to wear? The words they use to form a response? Their level of intelligence? Their capacity to be kind? Their generosity? The food that they eat?

Who defines a person? Is it the person themself? Is it the people around them that decide? Is it society? Your community? Your family? Is it your friends? The people you aspire to be?

When are you defined? The moment of birth? The moment of conception? At two years of age? The first time you look at your parents or the first word that you speak? Is it when you begin school? Or when you finish it? Are we ever truly and correctly defined by the time we die?

Where are we defined and how? Is it biological? Do we define ourselves based on our parents? Are we defined at school? Are the test results we achieve a definition of us? Are we defined at home? When we are alone? When are we with others?

Why are we defined?

Life is an extraneous variable. It plays with the purity of definition, so can the definition of ourselves ever be true? There are many things in life that taint, that change what could have been or what is. Like a Quidditch match. The Seeker is reaching for the Snitch, hand outstretched, fingers clawed like he can imagine the shape that the golden ball will mould into his hand. _Bam!_ Out of nowhere a bludger comes and hits him and he falls off his broom and down below.

Stereotypes taint. Like thick, black ink seeping into a clean glass of water. A stereotype can be a conception or an opinion or an image that is fixed and widely held about a particular type of person or thing. There are many stereotypes in this world. Some are harmless, such as boys like blue while girls like pink, all Texans live on cattle ranches, people of an Asian decent are apt at mathematics, that all politicians only think of personal gain and benefit, all librarians are old women who have a grey bun and thick glasses, and that all teenagers are rebels. Some, however, are harmful, such as men should marry women, all Muslims and Arabs are terrorists, people with dark skin are not as smart as those with white skin, all women cook, any feminine man is gay, and any masculine woman is a lesbian.

Stereotypes are often based on an assumption, or in some cases, a seed of truth. Some people are born with a stereotype, because people are quick to jump to the conclusion that a child will be like their parent, or have similar traits. They aren't given the same chances as those who don't have this prewritten stereotype. They aren't encouraged to even try to defy it because it's already there, and apparently, set in stone. These people, that are born with this stereotype, this label plastered on their forehead, are not given a chance to define themselves, because in the eyes of some, they are already defined.

However, preconceived perceptions can be incorrect.

For some, stereotyping can lead to bullying or avoidance or exclusion, for others it can lead to popularity or praise or favouritism. Stereotyping encourages this behaviour, encourages something that could be false to begin with. Stereotyping can lead to a life driven by hate or fear. This could be fear of judgment, fear or not being accepted, not wanting to be confined or defined by a mould or expectation and not wanting to be generalized, especially when that isn't who you are.

No one is the same; so preconceived perceptions can be incorrect.

There once was a story about two boys who hated each other. One had blonde hair and was in Slytherin house, his name was Draco Malfoy. He was often cold towards others; he was secretly afraid and insecure. He too was born from a stereotype, a dark and evil thing that only wanted hatred and death, everything that the boy wasn't. He was assumed to be heterosexual and the fear or being judged prevented him from challenging this. The other boy had dark hair and was in Gryffindor House; he risked everything he ever had to love and to fix as much as he could. He too had a stereotype placed upon him at a young age, an enormous expectation that weighed him down and played a part in etching the path of his choices. He was also assumed to be heterosexual and the boy that he loved was afraid.

Each other their stereotypes, their traits as well, were passed down onto their sons, Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy and Albus Severus Potter. These stereotypes were false. These stereotypes prevented these two boys from properly knowing each other before their fourth year.

This is the story about the blonde without a Dark Mark and the raven without a scar…


	2. The Name Judgment

_A/N: Thank you for all the reviews, especially to __**Michael**__: because of you I have achieved my goal in writing fanfiction, bless. _

_I'm trying to write shorter chapters, but it just doesn't work. _

**CHAPTER 1**

**THE NAME JUDGMENT**

"Are you sure you've packed everything? You've left nothing behind?" Ginny asked.

"Yes, I checked under my bed. I have everything."

"_Yes,_ mum."

"_Mum_. You've asked three times. My answer hasn't changed."

It wasn't hard to decipher which of the three Potter children's responses belonged to. James Sirius Potter was sixteen years of age and it was clearly evident through his impatience and impulsiveness. Albus thought that James believed he was above it all and 'too cool'. Lily just thought he was a twat. That wasn't to say that they all didn't get along half the time – they did – just not all of the time. Lily Luna Potter was as fiery as the colour of her hair. She had inherited Ginny's cheek and stood up to anyone who she thought needed standing up to. Albus admired his younger sister. He wished he had her confidence and strong voice. And then there was him.

Albus Severus Potter.

He was rather quiet at times, yet, being the wallflower that he was, he was quite observant and showed his wit everyone now and again. While James basked in his father's name, and Lily didn't need one to be known, Albus didn't really know what to make of it. He loved his father very much. They were as close as two stitches on a woollen scarf. Albus didn't have his father's (and James') wild hair; he still had a raven tone and piercing green eyes, sans the specs. Albus Severus Potter. Albus: after a wise and clever man whose name was known all throughout the Wizarding World. Severus: after a man who was the bravest his father ever knew, who sacrificed much for the greater good. Potter: after the mischief-maker, the grandfather he never knew and the father his father never met and the Boy Who Lived, the person who concurred He Who Must Not Be Named. While all the Potter children knew that their father associated no happy memories with that title, Albus still felt the weight of it creep up on his every now and again.

He wasn't his father.

So who was he?

o - O - o - O - o - O - o - O - o - O - o

"Scorpius," Astoria said, "please be good."

"I will," he promised his mother. "I always am. Do I need to remind you of the 'O' I received in Potions?"

Astoria smiles at this affectionately. "You _know _that is not what I mean. I don't want to hear about you asking Mrs Abbott if she can _'sneak you a Firewhiskey'_. That woman runs the Hogs Head; she has enough to worry about."

Scorpius' mouth dropped open and his eyes bludged in uncharacteristic surprise. "How? But I–" he spluttered.

"You count yourself lucky that I didn't tell you father," she told him, using her mum tone (stern but loving).

"It wasn't me!" Scorpius said with wide eyes, asking her to believe him. She raised a perfectly arched eyebrow at him, accompanied with a slight purse of her lips. "It was a _dare_! Honestly mother, I'm not that irresponsible. If I were to purchase Firewhiskey, no one would know about it."

Astoria sighed, knowing that with his sharp and crafty mind it was most likely true, but then it turned into a smile. "I am going to miss you." She told him, wrapping her arms around him and holding him close to her. Scorpius' arms held onto her tightly. "Lots," she added.

Scorpius nodded, his nose rubbing into her shoulder. He rested his head against the soft of her neck, which hid the corners of his mouth that were turned down. "I'm going to miss you too, mum." She ran her fingers through his blonde hair and kissed it twice. "Will you be okay?" he asked her, the words coming out as a whisper, like it was a secret.

"Of _course_ I will," she assured him, pulling them apart with a smile. "Why would I not be?"

He tried not to sigh. He wanted to tell her a lot of things, wants to, but doesn't, never has. Scorpius loved his mother dearly, and they were always open about things, but there were some things he just couldn't tell her, and the knowledge that she wasn't happy was one of them.

"Scorpius, where is your luggage?"

Scorpius looked up at the voice; white blonde hair, grey eyes, an older version of him – or so he's been told. Scorpius resisted the urge to jerk his chin towards the Hogwarts Express since he knows that his parents would not approve because _please use your words to explain yourself Scorpius, we are not gorillas, we do not use only gesture and primal sounds._

"Already on the carriage," he replied promptly. The steam was thickening now, he could feel it as he breathed in, and it felt like he couldn't wait to go home. He fisted at his jumper, impatient, like Hogwarts was already running through his veins. Hogwarts meant freedom and people his own age; it meant smiles, laughter and _learning_. It meant another year of growing up. There were people he would definitely _not_ be happy to see, utter delinquents and immature idiots that he had to put up with. But that was okay, Scorpius thought, because Hogwarts had a library that he could spend hours in, friends that made him laugh, and butterbeer (which he's not allowed to have at home, but he's fourteen and has decided that that won't be tolerated any longer) and colourful rooms that wouldn't absolutely be found at the Manor. He was itching to be back.

"Alright," Draco said softly. Draco thought that his son maybe hadn't realised this yet, but he missed greatly him every time he left. Always. He swallowed down hard and nodded, as if he was accepting that it was time for Scorpius to leave.

There was a piercing shriek that filled the dense air, which meant that it was time to say goodbye. Scorpius hugged his mother tightly, whispering that he loved her and to write to him because_ I always miss you a lot mum,_ and then turned towards his father. Draco put his arm around Scorpius' shoulder and pressed a kiss into his son's blonde hair. Without really thinking, Scorpius put his arm around his father's waist and rested his head against Draco's chest. He could hear his father's heartbeat and it made him feel safe. He wished he knew what that heart beat would really say if it could talk. He knew that his father loved him, and that he loved his father, but there was a 'more' that always hung in the air and Scorpius wants catch it one day, has to, because knowledge is everything.

"We will see you at Christmas, alright?" Draco said as Scorpius stepped out of his father's embrace. He nodded in response, said goodbye once more and hurried onto the train. As Scorpius walked through the carriage where his belongings were, the train began to move and he could feel the jolt of the tracks below, under his feet, the rhythmic da-da da-da da-da. He finally reached the door and turned the handle attached to the mahogany wood, peering through the glass as he did.

"Well look who finally decided to show up," the comment coming from a beautiful, pale girl with long, straight, dark hair, who was leaning against the window of the carriage. She smirked at him, her mascara-coated eyelashes fluttering.

"It's nice to see you too, Scarlet." Scorpius returned, grinning as she was. He slipped into the carriage and sat down next to her. Scarlet Nott was one of Scorpius' best friends. All she had to do was write notes in her work book, letting her long black hair fall and create a curtain that covered one side of her face and she had every boy in fourth year and above swooning. Scorpius thought it was hilarious. Scarlet was highly intelligent and had a firm no-bullshit policy. What Scorpius found amusing was that she was what every boy wanted, yet she wouldn't give any of them the time of day, calming that she didn't need_ 'to place my self-esteem in someone else to be happy, Scorpius.'_ Scarlet and Scorpius met in first year because they were both Slytherins. They had met in the library after the first Quidditch match of the season, which Slytherin had won, hence the desperate escape from the chaos that had erupted in the Slytherin Common Room.

"Hey mate!"

Scorpius' grin broadened as he saw Patrick sitting opposite them. Patrick was soft brown hair, a small sprinkling of freckles, bright blue eyes and _Irish_, his accent thick. The thing was, Patrick was like a two-sided coin; half the time he had already figured out spells and formulas and potions that they didn't need to know until second semester and the other half he was somehow sneaking Firewhiskey into the castle. But that would seem all understandable if you knew Patrick's story – the boy was the product of blue and green paint swirled together on a pallet – his whole family were Slytherins but he somehow was sorted into Ravenclaw. Scorpius also met Patrick in his first year when they were paired together for a potions assignment. The moment that Patrick exclaimed _"Sulphur Vive. Sulphur Vive? Yer supposed t'add Runespoor egg, ya twats! And why de 'ell ain't dey using Ptolemy? Bloody 'alf-wit dolts."_ after reading over their assigned potion for their task, they became instant friends. Scorpius had to admit that his father was not all approving of Patrick, thinking that he was a bad influence (which he was to a certain degree, sure, but it wasn't as if Scorpius was impressionable), but is mother was rather fond of the Irish lad.

"How were your holidays?" Scorpius asked him.

"Summer in Ireland," Patrick replied wistfully, "it's ter place ta be. Yer should'er come over mate! What about yerself?"

"It was alright, I suppose." Scorpius said, indifferent.

"It was just nice to have a break, don't you agree?" Scarlet joined in. The boys nodded their head in agreement, also making noting of the homework load that was sure to be unleashed the first day of classes. "Good to be back though I think."

"Can't wait fer da feast tonight," Patrick says contently, as if he's been waiting all summer for a Hogwarts meal. Scorpius didn't reply though, because he was in his thoughts at the moment, and besides, Patrick was _always_ hungry.

"Yes," Scorpius sighed happily. He leaned his head back against the leather seats of the carriage, breathing in deeply and exhaling out. It was _really_ good to be going back.

o - O - o - O - o - O - o - O - o - O - o

Albus just really wanted to tell James to _go and be irritating somewhere else_ because he'd been like that the whole of the summer break and he just wanted to sit down and enjoy the train ride through the countryside.

"I cannot _wait_ for charms," Rose gushed. "I read a _physics_ book over the holidays, so taking this class and really grasping how magic defies so many muggle laws of gravity and such should be _fascinating_."

"_Physics_?" James frowned, the word sounding like it was a disgusting taste on his tongue. "What the bloody hell is that? A disease?"

"_No,_" Rose rolled her eyes, "it's a muggle term to describe the science of how things move and work."

"You _would_ do something like that," Hugo commented, to which Rose ignored him. "What are you looking forward to this year, Al?"

Albus shrugged, "Just seeing everyone, getting back into a routine."

"Well I don't know about everyone else," Lily began, taking her hair out of that horrendous plait Ginny had made her sport, "but I am trying out for the Quidditch team this year."

"Good," James said as he took off his jumper, pulling it off from behind his neck, which made his hair even messier than it usually was, "we'll have half a decent team this year. Those bastard snakes won't have a thing on us."

"Why don't _you_ try out for this year's team, Al?" Rose suggested.

Albus' shoulder hunched forward every so slightly, subconsciously making him seem smaller. "It's not really my thing," he replied eventually, talking quietly.

"What do you mean it's not your thing?" Rose asked, her eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "You _love_ Quidditch."

"It's not _my_ thing," he stressed, internally cursing himself as he realised that the emphasis on the 'my' was indeed noticeable.

"What he means," Lily interjected, "is that it's not _his_ thing because it's _James'_ thing."

"_Lily_," Albus hissed, face flushing. However, James hadn't noticed because at that moment a tiny knock sounded on the glass window of the carriage door, which captured James' attention immediately. James quickly got up, Albus pulling up his knees so that his legs wouldn't be trampled on, and slid open the door. It closed with a click as James pushed the pretty looking girl against the glass and Albus was grateful that he only saw the back of her and not his brother shoving his tongue into her mouth.

Rose quickly smacked her hand over Hugo's eyes. Hugo squirmed around and yanked his sister's hand from his eyes with an annoyed look on his face. Rose huffed out through her nose and pursed her lips, and the said in a clipped tone, "Really. You think he would do that somewhere else."

"He's such a mongrel." Lily said, rolling her eyes, shaking her head and looking elsewhere. "Like for fu– oh come _on_! Gross."

Albus closed his eyes and sighed. He couldn't wait until the hum of the track beneath him came to a halt in front of Hogsmeade Station, where he would soon step foot into the grounds of Hogwarts.

_Hogwarts_.

Albus smiled. Although in the safety of his own home, Grimmauld Place, Albus was just _Al_ and not _Albus_ _Severus Potter_, he still loved Hogwarts, which had always had a very special place in his heart. And so he waited…

o - O - o - O - o - O - o - O - o - O - o

Scorpius woke up to, "Malfoy get _up_! Or you're gonna be bloody late."

He groaned, squeezing his eyes shut and thinking _maybe last night's welcome back gathering mightn't have been such a great idea_ as stretched out, curling his toes and yawning quietly. He pulled the doona up over his eyes and relished in his own body heat.

"Malfoy, I swear to Sly–"

"Oh go and irk someone else, Parkinson," Scorpius moaned, and then muttered quietly under the covers, adding, "you pretentious twat."

Scorpius reached for his watch and judging by the time he had two options: he could have a shower and make it just in time for class, or he could quickly eat and make it just in time for class. Shaking his head, knowing that he would be missing out on a scrumptious breakfast, he hastily set off for the showers. In a matter of half an hour he was ready, a sizable feat for Scorpius Malfoy. He counted it as an accomplishment as he hurriedly walked down the corridor, ignoring the way his books were almost slipping out of his grip. _What horrible form_, he thought to himself.

"Need a hand?"

Scorpius looked up and saw that the questioned belonged to a dark-skinned girl with a neat, black braid. "I should manage to make it to the dungeons, but thank you all the same." He replied.

She rolled her eyes at him and stepped forward, taking two books from him and rearranging them in his bag so that they would all fit. "There," she said, "much better. We can't have you walking around the castle like that now, can we? Whatever would your father say?" She winked at him.

Scorpius rolled his eyes and smiled at her. "Thank you Ebony," he said. "Don't you have class?"

"I have a free period this morning," she replied. "I'm off to the library to finish some homework. The joys of being a sixth year." She said grimly.

"I can imagine. I best be off – we can't have me being late for potions now, can we? What_ever_ would my father say?"

Ebony laughed and agreed. Before she left she told him, "Give my best to Draco and Astoria, won't you?" Scorpius assured her he would and asked her to do the same for Blaise.

He opened the dungeon door and placed his books on the desk next to Scarlet. "Well don't you look perky this morning," she said mockingly, grinning. "Remember the days when you were a good little first year, going to bed early, leaving the common room to escape to the library when the house parties began. Where oh _where_ has that Scorpius gone?"

"Oh shut it," Scorpius said grumpily. "It was the first night back, moreover, I had already completed all of my holiday homework."

Whatever Scarlet's response was going to be, it was interrupted as their potions professor entered the room. She began taking them through soluble plant leaves and their properties. The sound of quills scratching across parchment filled the room and Scorpius resisted the urge to sigh in contentment. He grabbed a spare piece of parchment and wrote down a question that he had in regards to something that had just been explained, just in case he forgot it. No sooner had he finished writing down the question than Rose Weasley's curious hand shot into the air, straight and stiff as a board, and asked the very same question. Scorpius breathed out sharply through his nose and his lips mashed together in an aggravated line. _Every year_, Scorpius thought to himself, _every year I have Potions with that intolerable know-it-all._ Why was it that he had Potions with the Gryffindors _all the time_?

Scorpius shook his head and reminded himself that, on a scale from one to his grandmother's perfume, it wasn't that bad. However, when Scorpius tried to tell himself that after the third time it had happened, it didn't work. Scorpius' hand darted up in the air, fingers pressed tightly together in determination, making him look completely insufferable but he really couldn't care less. Scarlet snorted quietly beside him, knowing exactly what he was up to. He ignored her.

"Ah yes," Professor Mercury perked up, looking delighted that another student was asking a question, "Mr Malfoy."

"Professor, if you add splinter of mahogany to the concoction, I understand that it increases the level of potassium, but won't it eliminate the effects of the sage, which was just added three steps ago?" Scorpius asked.

She absolutely beamed at him. "That is absolutely correct, Mr Malfoy. Your attention to detail is undeniably evident. Ten points to Slytherin!"

She began answering his question, however Scorpius wasn't paying attention – he already knew the answer. He turned his neck to look at Rose Weasley, who slowly turned her head around. When she realised that he was watching her she glared. Scorpius smirked.

Just then, the person sitting next to her placed his hand gently on her wrist and whispered something into her ear. She shot Scorpius one last glare and turned her attention back to the front of the class. Scorpius was then confronted with the delicate gaze of Albus Potter. His smirk immediately evaporated as they held eyes for the tiniest of moments, before Albus' eyes quickly darted away. Scorpius stared at the raven-haired boy for several more seconds before returning to his work and thinking nothing much else of it.

The class collectively groaned and Scorpius knew that the year had well and truly begun when they received their homework, asking himself why all this "babyish rubbish" was being handed out to be completed by next lesson.

"Ah! Now, before this slips my mind, you all have an assignment!" Professor Mercury chirped.

"Kill me," Scarlet groaned into her hands, "just end it now."

"Now, now," she tutted, "that's not way to be. I expect to see smiles in my classroom."

"My favourite subject," Scorpius moaned, "and they hire an airheaded, bloody skipping-in-a-field-of-daisies imbecile. How will I _learn?_"

"Oh you'll learn just fine, stop moping." Scarlet sighed. "If you taught yourself how to use the Room of Requirement, I have no doubt you'll be able to teach yourself how to brew a couple of potions."

"_How to brew a couple of potions_," Scorpius scoffed as he neatly stacked his books into his bag. "You would think it was a cooking class for bloody soup. Brew a couple a couple of potions." He muttered darkly while Scarlet chuckled.

"So you will be paired up for this assignment," Professor Mercury informed the class, "and I shall be selecting the partners." The class groaned again, loudly, leaving her looking rather cross.

"But professor," Rose protested instantly, "we're in our _fourth_ year, surely we can choose who we can work with."

"Now that is quite enough," Professor Mercury snapped, making Rose shrink back into her seat. Scorpius bit back a grin. "I will now be reading out who you will be working with for the next four weeks, so please pay attention. "Scarlet Nott, you will be working with Danielle Donahue."

"_Sweet_," Scarlet sang under her breath. She turned to her left to subtly bump fists with Danielle.

"Jake Parkinson, you will be partnered with Rose Weasley."

Scorpius had never seen Rose look so appalled, scandalized and utterly horrified. Her mouth had dropped open in disbelief. Well, at least Potter found it slightly amusing as well, watching as the Gryffindor tried to contain his smile. Scorpius had never really paid attention to him before. Of course he knew who he was, who in the Wizarding World did not? And of course he knew that they were both in the same year together, and sometimes they even had classes together. He knew what the "Potter" name meant. His grandmother had reminded him constantly, much to the disproval of his parents.

Unfortunately, Scorpius had somewhat of a stereotype because of his last name too, and he decided in his first year, and thought it was best, to not make things complicated, not start any rumours or stories, so he stayed clear of Albus Potter. They were sorted into different houses, Slytherin and Gryffindor respectively, supposed rival houses, and that made certain that their paths were even more unlikely to cross.

It was more James Potter that he noticed – loud, well-known Quidditch player, popular with the girls and seemed to be rather arrogant about his title as a "Potter". He had seen the redhead, Lily, walking around every now and again, but he had not really taken any notice. Albus though, Scorpius did not know a lot about. He frowned at this, a crease forming between his two brows, because he usually knew a lot about everyone, mainly because he paid attention to the things that people missed. In all the classes that Scorpius and Albus had ever been in, he had never seen the other lad raise his hand to ask a question, or do anything particularly noticeable. Over the four years they had been in a variety of classes together come to think of it, everything other than Defence Against the Dark Arts as it turned out. Albus was usually stuck to Rose Weasley's side and it would make sense that Scorpius never really noticed him before because he had always been too busy glaring at Rose to look beside her. He–

A sharp nudge to his ribcage abruptly pulled him out of his thoughts. "What?" he hissed at Scarlet.

"Mr Malfoy," Professor Mercury said, "did you hear what I just said?"

"Sorry professor, I was distracted as I was writing down my homework." He lied smoothly.

"I said that you will be working with Albus Potter on your Potions assignment."

The whole room fell quiet.

Albus' face flushed as the noise dropped to complete silence. The air was thick with tension. His jaw tightened as his teeth clenched together. Why had partnership elicited such a reaction from his classmates? It was no different from everyone else's.

But that was the thing – it _was_. There was no denying what had happened between their fathers, how they despised and hated each other (Albus had heard it countless times from his Ron, Hermione and his mother). There was no denying that he was a Potter and the blond-haired boy was a Malfoy. Albus' last name seemed to follow him everywhere, and right now especially, he hated it. His heartbeat picked up as he felt all the eyes on the room fall on him. He'd never even _spoken_ to Scorpius, there was nothing that had ever arisen between them, so why did he feel like a treacherous crime had been committed by putting them together?

"Very well, class dismissed."

Scorpius gathered his things and left quickly, Scarlet by his side. "What will your father say?" Scarlet questioned as they walked down the corridor to their next class. "What will your _grandmother_ say?"

"They don't need to know," Scorpius interjected immediately, stopping any more of Scarlet's thoughts from being voiced. He hoisted the strap of his bag a little higher onto his shoulder as they turned a corner. _Shit_, Scorpius thought to himself. He shook his head in irritation. From what he'd heard, their fathers hated each other. Were Scorpius and Albus supposed to dislike each other too? He'd never even spoken the Gryffindor boy; he didn't know what to say to him. How was he to approach him? What if he was a typical, arrogant Gryffindor? Although, Scorpius did have to be fair, he didn't _seem_ like that. Well…he didn't seem to be like anything to be honest. Another thought floated into Scorpius' mind and he groaned, "What if he is completely inept at potions? Like…proper balls at it?"

Scarlet rolled her eyes. "Scorp, I doubt that Potter being hopeless at potions will not stop you from receiving top marks on your assignment."

"Scarlet, that is beside the point."

"You sound so much like your father sometimes."

"Spectacular."

Scarlet rolled her eyes. "It was a joke, Scorpius. You love your father very much, as he does you."

Scorpius sighed as he held the classroom door open for her and then followed her in. "I know," he said as they took their places, "I just feel that sometimes…he's not…genuine."

After lunch Scorpius pondered on something Patrick had told him: "Well, we were partnered fer a Potions assignment, weren't we? Look at us now, mate – we're best friends! It mightn't be as bad as you tink it'll be. I'm sure it'll fine, Scorp. Be a top lad'n pass ta bread, won't ya?"

o - O - o - O - o - O - o - O - o - O - o

"You can't complain, Albus." Rose told him solemnly. "I've been partnered with _Parkinson._" Rose spat out his name like he was some type of vermin. "He is so _rude_ and narcissistic. I cannot stand him. Not to mention he has the brain capacity of a shrimp. It's an absolute outrage, Albus. I'll have to do all the work, that's for sure, and keep an eye that his grotty hands don't contaminate anything."

Albus continued walking towards the greenhouses with Rose silently. He chewed on the inside of his cheek as he thought. All he kept thinking was the way Scorpius had been looking at him. The Slytherin's gaze had been so…_analysing_. It had made him feel hot and on edge because…well…no one ever looked at him like that. They had never needed to. When someone saw him they thought, _'Oh Albus Severus Potter, son of the boy who lived.'_ And apparently, in their eyes, that explained everything to them and they knew all about him. No one ever _looked_ past all of that and tried to figure him out.

But Scorpius had been trying to figure him out. Albus put it down to the fact that they had never really talked or met each other properly, but still.

And maybe that means Scorpius doesn't just accept _Albus Severus Potter_, maybe for Scorpius that isn't good enough. Maybe Scorpius wants to know more. Maybe.

Scorpius had always been an interest to Albus, ever since first year. Scorpius had confused Albus – and greatly so. He had heard stories, so many stories; Albus always seemed to hear them. There were stories that could be used for everything and anything. Albus didn't like the stories that came out of people's mouths. He preferred the stories in books, where they were a direct and primary source, where he could see each black print of a letter and know that it was real and true.

Because he had heard a lot of stories about Scorpius Malfoy, or rather, he had heard stories about his father, Draco. A lot of words had been used to describe them, words that Albus would have associated with a terrible nature: "vial" "cowardly" "evil" "low-life" "loathsome" "sly" "murderer" "egoistic" "hurtful" "rude".

Though, it was as if he was told that the sun was dark and grim and gave no light, but when in fact he looked at it, it was bright and was only noticed because it was so.

So when Albus attended Hogwarts for the first time, expecting Scorpius Malfoy to be as dark as he was told, to say that he felt confused was an understatement. Scorpius seemed to be a quite boy. During class he was always calmly taking notes and once in a while he would ask a particularly complicated question about a particularly complicated topic that they were studying. Sometimes he would catch Scorpius laughing or smiling widely when he was having dinner at the Slytherin table. It was even more stranger when Albus saw that he had befriended someone from a different house, a Ravenclaw, a _muggle born_. He had never heard a bad word about Scorpius, other than the few times he was rumoured to have snuck out of the castle to go to the Hogshead with a group of students. According to Rose, he was in the library a fair bit as well.

It confused Scorpius because what he had heard about him, or his last name, didn't seem to be true. It didn't match and coincide with what he saw. That was when Albus realised that they both had something in common.

It's not that he _liked_ Scorpius, absolutely not, it was just that Scorpius intrigued him.

"Al," Rose began, obviously mistaking his lack of speaking for dismay, "as much as I hate to admit it, at least Malfoy is good at potions, so you'll be fine. Even if he is a conceited, big-headed, challenge-seeking Slytherin who behaves obsequiously in order to gain favour of teaches, it's only for a few weeks."

"I know, it's just–"

"That he's a Malfoy and you're scared he'll be mean to because you're a Potter. I get it." Rose finished for him, even though that's not really how Albus would have put it at all.

"Well, he could be…nice? Maybe? It's not really fair if I judge him for his name, is it? Everyone does it to me, and I can see that some people do that to him too. So if I don't judge him for his name, maybe he won't judge me for mine?" Albus reasoned.

Rose stopped. She looked at him with something that Albus couldn't quite pinpoint. "Look, Al…I…" she stopped and gave him that look again and (was it pity? No…it was sort of how Scorpius had looked at him…possibly) she placed a hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze, "…just don't be too disappointed if it doesn't work out how you expected it to, okay?"

"I know. I won't be." He just wanted to give the blond-haired boy the same chance that he wanted. That was it. Maybe it would work out okay. He hoped.

**A/N: Hey guys, thanks for the reviews, they are very much appreciated!**

**I've been yelling at myself for the past week because I realised that, because of how I aged things in chapter 20 of TBA, this will be set in Albus, Scorpius and Rose's fourth year, which means they will all be fourteen (and then eventually 15). In my opinion, fourteen is absolutely too young to be doing the things that Harry and Draco were doing at sixteen/seventeen (that's just my own personal opinion, feel free to disagree with it). So I've absolutely screwed myself over because I don't want this to be an underage, but I can't go back and change things now. Ugh. Anyways, bottom line – no sexy-bum-times :(**

**Feedback is appreciated!**

**Alli xxxxx**


	3. First Words

**Chapter 2**

**First Words**

_Thank you to all the fabulous reviews! _

The first week proved to be exhausting. The students of Hogwarts were used to staying up late and waking up late, but now they were back at school they had to go to bed early and wake up early. The only problem was that they had a generous amount of homework, as it appeared that the teachers didn't believe in slowly moving back into the motion of things.

So far, Albus understood everything that he was given, just, but still it was a fair effort. He had stayed up a little later on Wednesday night to listen to Lily retell how her Quidditch tryouts went ("But still, I'm only a second year, Al." "And I bet you that you are better than three quarters of the people older than you, Lily.").

He had written to his parents, telling them about his week so far, talking about his classes and friends, conveniently leaving out the bit about being partnered with Scorpius Malfoy for a potions assignment. He told them about Lily, James and Rose, and even passing on Professor McGonagall's warm wishes.

"And to think dad was slaying Basilisks at this age," Lily muttered as she sat down next to Albus, James, Rose and Hugo at the breakfast table, "I can't even bloody get up in the morning."

James grunted in agreement. "Fuck," he said, shaking his head as he drank his coffee, "how in Gryffindor's name am I supposed to run a Quidditch team this year with all this bloody homework? I don't even have time to hang out with my friends!"

"Well, maybe if you weren't so busy acquiring all of _those_," Rose pointed to the love bites that were scattered around James' neck, "you might have some more free time on your hands."

"Yeah, Jamsie." Lily teased.

James glared at her. "I _hate_ that name."

Albus just smirked as he forked some more scrambled eggs into his mouth. "I think it suits you," Albus commented, shrugging slightly, knowing that it would rile James up a bit.

"Dickhead."

"Prat."

"That the best you got?"

"Can't use big words with you James, they don't reflect truthfully on your size."

James blinked in shock, not expecting such a line from his little brother. Lily burst out laughing, "I think you're rubbing off on him James."

o - O - o - O - o - O - o - O - o - O - o

Awkward was an understatement, that was for sure. After Scorpius walked into Defence Against the Dark Arts and saw that he had this class with the Gryffindors, he kept his eyes away from Albus the entire lesson, purposefully avoiding him. That was, he kept his eyes away when he knew that Albus Potter was focused on something else. The other times, though, he watched with curiosity.

Albus was different in this class, he noted. He was still rather quiet and attracted no attention, but he had a more confident air to him. His eyes were bright as he watched their professor intently as he explained.

Scorpius watched as a small smile would creep into the corner of Albus' mouth each time he got the incantation correct. Scorpius also realised that Albus would master the spell one the first go every time, unlike his cousin, Rose. That _may_ or may not have made him feel a little friendlier towards the raven-haired boy.

It was strange, Scorpius thought. Albus was clearly mastering everything, so why didn't he take more pride in himself?

"When have you and Albus decided to meet to start the potions assignment?" Scarlet asked him while they were packing up.

"I…" Scorpius began, his forehead creasing as he thought about it, "we haven't yet organised a time."

Scarlet jerked her chin in Albus' direction, "You might want to think about doing that sometime soon."

"You're right," he nodded. He ran a hand through his blond hair, smoothing his fringe so it feathered to the side.

He saw Albus leaving the classroom. He chewed the inside of his cheek and his fingers rubbed together and he decided to go over. Scorpius sidestepped a few desks and approached the Gryffindor. Clearing his throat he said, "Excuse me?"

Albus stopped, as did Rose, and turned around. His green eyes widened as he blinked in surprise. "Hello," Scorpius began awkwardly, "I was uh hoping to organise a time to work on our project together?"

Albus turned to Rose and then said quietly to her, "I'll see meet you back in the common room?"

Rose looked at him apprehensively but then after a moment she agreed with a nod and left. Albus turned back to Scorpius and the two boys were confronted with a heavy silence. Albus was at a loss for words, he was uncertain when it came to new people and he was really sure how to approach the Slytherin.

"So I…" Scorpius cleared his throat, and then tried, "I suppose you ended up with a weird name as well, huh?"

The second the words left this mouth Scorpius felt himself flush in mortification – did he really just say that? Of all the things to say, let alone the first words they had spoken to each other, and he says something potentially offensive and rude? He was about to apologise but stopped when he saw Albus laugh. Albus immediately slapped his hand over his mouth, as if the laugh had escaped him and he had let his guard down. He awkwardly dropped his hand to his side, but couldn't remove the small smile from his face. "I suppose I did," he agreed quietly, looking directly at Scorpius. "Yours is a bit better than mine, though." Albus added, hoping to make Scorpius feel a little better, having seen the way the Slytherin's eyes bulged out of his head when he first spoke.

Scorpius pursed his lips in disagreement, "No, it sounds too aggressive. And it sounds rather old."

Albus nodded, considering this. "If it makes you feel any better, I think the person I was named after was about one hundred and fifteen. And he had a beard."

Scorpius tried to stop the smile that crept onto his face, he cleared his throat, trying to control himself, but failed miserably as his amusement shone through. "I see."

Albus' hand latched onto his other arm as he stood there waiting for Scorpius to say something, as he was clearly, again, at a loss for words. "Umm…"

Scorpius then looked a little flustered and reached into his bag and pulled out a leather-bound diary and searched for a pen. "Alright, when did you want to organise a time to meet to go over the assignment?"

"I umm…I can meet you whenever's best for you. I don't really mind." Albus answered with a small shrug.

"Oh, alright," Scorpius said, closing his diary and tucking it away, "how about Saturday?"

"Saturday's good," Albus nodded.

"Does the library work well for you?" Scorpius asked.

"Yes," Albus replied.

Scorpius decided that Albus didn't say much, but he decided that that was okay too. "After lunch?"

"Sure," Albus agreed, smiling a little. He shifted his weight to his other foot.

"Well, I suppose I'll see you on Saturday then." Scorpius said, picking up his books and turning towards the door.

"Okay," Albus said, nodding, "Saturday."

Scorpius walked towards the door but before he made it out of the doorway Albus called out to him. "Scorpius!"

Scorpius blinked in surprise as he heard Albus call his name for the first time, Albus looked to be quite surprised himself to have said it. Albus had never really herd Scorpius' name being passed on through his family, it was just "Malfoy". Scorpius seemed to be taken back as well that his last name had not been used, as everyone who didn't know him seemed to use it. "I…" Albus began nervously, fidgeting and looking down before focusing back on the blond-haired boy, "I'm not…very good. At potions, that is. I'm sort of terrible. Rose helps me a lot, but, yeah." He was a bit jittery and then added more quietly, "Sorry…that I'm not good at it. I know you are. Like, really good. Amazing, even. So, I'm sorry that I'm…not."

Scorpius' eyebrows travelled upwards, taken back by the sudden and rather rushed confession of Albus Potter's. He looked at the fourteen year old curiously, trying to figure out why someone who didn't even know him didn't want to disappoint him or bring him down. To be honest, Scorpius had initially been a little ticked off that his partner was going to be someone who A, he didn't know, and B, who wasn't as apt at potions as he was. But then again, the only person whose potions skills compared to his was Rose Weasley, as painful as it was to admit. The thing was, usually when Scorpius worked in a group, he ended up doing all the work anyways because other people always aggravated him because they did things wrong, or carelessly, or, mainly, not up to his standard. So when he really thought about it, he didn't mind having Albus as a partner. In all truthfulness, the boy made his curiosity flare up and interested him immensely.

"I…Albus, I don't mind." Scorpius told him honestly. Albus gave him a look like he didn't believe him. "Honestly, I– really, I don't mind if I…help you to understand it. If," he looked at Albus unsurely, "if that's what you need…or want?"

Albus' mouth opened and closed, forming the beginning of words that never came out, before he finally replied, "Sure. I–" he paused and occupied his hands by linking his fingers together, "yeah. Thank you."

"It's fine," Scorpius shrugged easily, meaning it. He looked over Albus once more, taking in the shy Gryffindor with the green eyes and dark hair and wondered a million wonders. "I'll see you on Saturday then."

"Saturday," Albus agreed.

"See you," Scorpius nodded, offering a small smile.

Albus returned it, "Bye."

_Thank you for reading :-)_

_Also, I have finally made a Tumblr! So feel free to send in any Drarry prompts or send in whatever!_

_Alli xxxxx_


	4. Three's a Crowd

**Chapter 3  
THREE'S A CROWD**

_Thank you for the reviews, especially the ones telling me to stick to my guns :-) I'm really enjoying writing this from a younger perspective (BECAUSE THEY'RE SO CUTE AND SHY) so yeah. Thanks again!_

"I'm sure I'll be fine Rose," Albus told her as they both walked to the library, "you don't have to come with me."

"Albus, I wish I didn't have to come with you, but I do, because I'm meeting up with Parkinson to do this potions assignment too. Ignoring the fact that I'll be doing all of the work myself, he still needs to be there, unfortunately. I mean can you imagine if Professor Mercury asked him about our assignment and he had no idea? It's too horrible to even think about." Rose talked all the way to the library, venting her feelings of absolute horror that she had to work with a person like _that_.

Albus nodded along, _yes_ing and _mhhm_ing in all the right places. They both walked into the library and passed Mrs Pince; Albus smiled to himself as he remembered Ron saying, _"Is that old bat still alive?"_ To which Hermione had scowled at him and that had made everyone laugh.

"I need to go and look for a book," Rose told him, "I'll meet you at a table."

"Okay," Albus replied. He walked past the rows and rows of shelves craning his head to see if Scorpius was already at a table. When there were only a few rows to go he stopped, what if Scorpius didn't come? Well, Scorpius didn't _seem_ like the type of person to not show up for a study session. But what _if_? What if–

"Oi, Potter!"

Albus froze at hearing his own name and turned around to see who had called him. Scarlet Nott was looking at him with her eyebrows raised expectantly and waved her hand around a little in the air to catch his attention.

Albus looked a bit hesitant and pointed to himself, "Me?"

She rolled her eyes at him and replied, "Do you see any other Potters here?"

"Umm…"

She sighed. "He's down the back." And she pointed to the very last row of shelves. That makes sense, Albus thought, because no body ever bothered to go all the way to the back, so it was quiet.

Scarlet mistook Albus' time thinking as time spent being confused, so she rolled her eyes again and said, "Come on." She led him to the back and pointed to Scorpius, who was sitting quietly at a table with a sandwich next to him, reading a book. Albus regarded the large pile of books next to him wearingly. "Thank you," he told Scarlet.

"Hey, hot stuff," Scarlet called to Scorpius, who didn't even batter an eyelid and continued reading. Scarlet sighed (Albus thought she must be either constantly disappointed and exasperated at the world), "I brought you something."

Scorpius flicked some fallen crumbs off the page of his book, his posture perfect and poised as he read, still not having looked up. "What would you like, Scarlet?"

"Fine, I'll just take Potter back up to Gryffindor, he'll see you later." She said matter-of-factly, a tone of teasing in her voice.

Scorpius' head snapped up and his hand reached onto the desk to pick up a piece of paper and slide it into his book before closing it, his eyes never leaving Scarlet and Albus. "Oh, hi."

"Hello," Albus replied, swallowing and licking his lips and knowing that everything about him screamed nervous but he couldn't help it, this was _Scorpius Malfoy_ and he was _Albus Potter _and what did Scorpius think about that?

"Right, I'll see you at dinner then, shall I?" Scarlet asked.

"Of course," Scorpius replied easily, his hand moved to his fringe and feathered it to the side. "Are we studying afterwards?"

"Of course," she said, using his words. Scorpius rolled his eyes and sported a small smile.

"Well, bye then." And then she turned and left.

Scorpius' eyes turned to Albus and he looked to the side at the large pile of books. He bit his bottom lip into his mouth and then said, "Did you want to sit down?"

"Uh, yes." Albus nodded hurriedly and then walked over to the wooden desk to sit next to Scorpius. "I erm…read over the assignment."

"Oh," Scorpius said, his eyebrows raised in surprise and lips slightly pouted showing that he was impressed, "good."

_You need to calm down_, Albus thought to himself. He didn't understand why he felt like he was so tense that he would snap at any moment. Well, he did, but it didn't matter. He told himself that it didn't matter. They could be friends. They could be assigned partners. They could be any of those and be them _normally_ because they were both normal boys. He swallowed and took in a deep breath, closing his eyes and exhaling. His shoulders loosened and his hands unfurled from being tightly wound. _This is okay_, he thought.

"Did you have any questions?" Scorpius asked. "About the assignment."

Albus' cheeks flushed a gorgeous pink, making his green eyes more vibrant. "I– yeah, I did."

_Does he have a constant blush on his face?_ Scorpius thought. He had to admit, it amused him a little.

"It's okay to have questions," Scorpius assured him, "it's great actually." Albus looked at him hesitantly. "Honestly," Scorpius insisted, "it means that you are going to learn…because you're curious. It means that…you're thinking about it. As in, thinking about what you are thinking about…" Scorpius trailed off with a frown, replaying what he said over in his head and realising that it probably didn't make any sense.

"I understand," Albus endorsed. He pulled out the piece of parchment that the assignment was written on and a pen to write notes on it. He also took out his potions exercise book.

"Alright, which questions didn't you understand?" Scorpius reached forward to grab his pen and paper.

"…all of them?"

Scorpius stopped and turned to look at him, his hands still outstretched in the air. "Oh."

Albus watched him meekly, his blush returning to his face. "Sorry," he muttered.

"No I– it's fine. Really. Let's go through it," he offered, trying to sound encouraging. As he put the piece of paper in the middle of them he saw Albus' lip in his mouth and general look of discomfort on his face. He stopped.

"Albus."

Albus looked up at him. He felt both surprised and confused at the gentle yet stern tone in which Scorpius had said his name in. "Yes?"

"Look, Albus," he said, drawing all of the Gryffindor's attention on him as he spoke, "no one is good at everything. I…I don't know you…well. So I don't know what you're good at. But, if you're not good at potions, well, that's okay. I mean, you can't blame yourself – our teacher has no idea what she's doing – so it's really a wonder how anyone could know what to do. I honestly do not mind explaining it to you. Seriously. No one…no one expects you to be great at everything."

Albus looked at him with awe in his eyes because, yes, he'd heard that before, a few times, from family. And really, that didn't count, well, that's what _he_ thought at least. Scorpius said it himself, he didn't know Albus well at all, but he also said something that was the most important; he said that no one had any expectations of him. He felt something spread inside him and he didn't know why that feeling was there, was it gratitude? He felt…connected. Like someone finally understood. And he was supposed to reply 'okay' or 'thank you' but the words that slipped out of his mouth were completely different and not what he had any intention of voicing to someone who was practically a stranger, "Yes they do."

Scorpius blinked in confusion and frowned, his grey eyes forming clouds. He opened his mouth to question, "What d–"

"Mind if we sit here?" Jake Parkinson interrupted, the words sounding like an ugly grunt.

Actually, Scorpius _did_ mind. "I–"

"Great." Parkinson replied. He sat down next to Scorpius, slamming his books down onto the table messily. Rose sat down gracefully next to him, looking like she was about to kill someone with the way her hands were clenched by her sides and her lips mashed into a hard line, as if by gritting them together the insults on the tip of her tongue would be kept at bay. She roughly pushed her hair behind her ear and said to Albus in a clipped tone, "Hey."

Albus offered her a smile, "Hey." When it was clear that she wouldn't be saying anything else, Albus cleared his throat and looked at her expectantly, nudging his head in Scorpius' direction. Rose's expression turned sour but Albus fixed her with an insisting look. Rose rolled her eyes and looked like she was barely managing to maintain her emotions. She cleared her throated and greeted, "Malfoy."

"Weasley." Scorpius returned, just as abrupt.

"What a blood waste of time, eh?" Jake nudged Scorpius, who regarded him with a look of disapproval.

"I found it rather interesting actually," Scorpius replied, his voice flat and contained, something that Rose was not capable at this point in time, Albus thought.

"Interesting?" Parkinson snorted. "Ah well, don't really care." And then in a lower voice he said to Scorpius, "Got the redhead here to do it for me."

Rose's head slowly turned to look at Jake Parkinson, her eyes boring into the back of his head loathingly, loathing being referred to as '_the redhead'_. Her eyelids fluttered closed as he counted to ten and then resumed her work on the assignment.

Scorpius focused his attention back on Albus. He was about to start going through the assignment when he remembered what Albus had said: "_Yes they do"_. He knew that he couldn't bring the subject up here in front of Neanderthal Parkinson nor know-it-all Weasley, but the way his index finger tapped the table rhythmically pointed out to him that he was desperate to understand how Albus' mind worked. He wondered why the boy was of such great fascination to him.

Albus seemed to have an idea about where Scorpius' thoughts were and quickly decided to stop them before they developed into questions, "Should we start with the first question?"

Scorpius thought that that was the most amount of words he had used in a sentence so far today but he bit his tongue and nodded in concurrence. "Yes, uh…here. So here it talks about Gregory's Unctuous Unction; the potion that will make the drinker believe that the first person they see is there best friend. It discusses its effects on the drinker and side effects. We need to look at all of its properties and ingredients and explain how each ingredient causes the effect that it does." He looked up at Albus, checking that he was following. Albus gave him a nod and he continued, "Have you read the method and ingredients?"

"Yes," Albus told him. "Umm…Fluxweed, Honey, Porcupine Quills and Essence of Rose Oil. I think?"

"Correct," Scorpius commended, "you just forg–"

"Black Beetle Eye."

Scorpius froze. _Calm, calm, calm, keep calm,_ he chanted to himself in his head. He turned his head ever so slowly to the side and looked at Rose Weasley, fixing her with a 'do-you-mind?' look. He shook his head and huffed a small breath and then returned his attention to Albus. "You just missed Black Beetle Eye, but other than that you were right."

A hint of a smile quirked at the corners on Albus' mouth.

"I wrote down the properties of each of the ingredients and their effects and side effects, so you can read over them later." He handed Albus the few sheets of parchment he had written on. Albus looked at the question sheet and realised that Scorpius had done question one all by himself.

_Gregory's Unctuous Unction Assignment _

_1. What are the properties, effects and side effects of each ingredient?_

_2. Why is honey more soluble than almond oil? Include Wendle's formula on solubility._

_3. What is the product of Black Beetle Eye mixed with Fluxweed, and what ingredient must be added to surmount this?_

_4. Explain the importance of turning the potion anti-clockwise seven times after the maturing process of the Porcupine Quills is complete. Include all working out._

_5. Another potion also contains the ingredient of Rose Oil; which potion is this and what relevance does it have to Gregory's Unctuous Unction?_

_6. How long is the duration of potion's effects on the drinker, and what could be done to extend this time?_

_7. Why does the potion need a crescent moon to mature instead of a full moon? Provide a diagram. _

_8. What are the visible effects that this potion has on the drinker?_

_9. Rewrite Gregory's Unctuous Unction, incorporating all the changes/additions to the potion you have discovered and any other necessary additions. _

"You did all of the first question by yourself," Albus said, feeling bad that he hadn't yet contributed.

"I just wrote down everything from our potions book," Scorpius told him, "don't worry, it was just copying down definitions." Albus said okay and they continued working on the second question. Scorpius explained Wendle's formula around solubility and how it was relevant to the potion. Albus took note that his handwriting was ridiculously neat and that he wrote things in different colour ink so that his notes were colour co-ordinated and organised. "It's quite simple. The equation requires you to–"

"Aren't you not supposed to have food in the library?" Rose interrupted, eyeing Scorpius' half-eaten sandwich.

"Aren't you supposed to mind your own business?" Scorpius shot back, not being able to stop himself. Honestly, couldn't she keep her freckled nose out of it? It infuriated him, especially since he was taught that interrupting people while they were talking or meddling in other people's business was the height of rudeness.

"Well you're breaking school rules," Rose said bluntly.

"Don't you have anywhere else to be, Weasley?" Scorpius asked. "Because you are not only disrupting my learning, but your cousin's."

Rose was about to snap back but then Albus said firmly, "Rose." She huffed out sharply through her nose and went back to writing in her book.

When Scorpius turned around he was met with Albus' apologetic look and he immediately mellowed. "Where were we?" he asked, picking up his quill.

"Uh, here." Albus brought his finger up to point to a certain section of the page.

"Oh that's right," Scorpius said and then he recommenced his explanations. Albus bit his lip halfway through and asked a question hesitantly. Scorpius looked at him curiously and Albus flushed under the scrutiny. "Here," he said, reaching for a piece of paper and some coloured inks, "maybe this will make it easier." He spent the next few minutes drawing a picture…no, a diagram. He then added various arrows that lead to simple explanations. "Better?" he asked Albus once he was done.

Albus took the sheet of parchment and looked at it, reading carefully and followed the arrows. He nodded to himself as he read, humming in understanding every so often. "I get it," he said, looking up at Scorpius with a surprised look on his face.

"Sometimes pictures help people learn better," Scorpius informed him with a shrug.

Albus looked at the piece of paper again. "You're…you're very good at drawing."

Scorpius shrugged again and simply said, "I get it from mum." And then after an afterthought he added, "Thanks."

Albus smiled his shoulders lifted up and down, "It's true." And then he blushed. _Yup, _Scorpius thought, _he does that a lot._

"Alright, now the thing about Black Beetle Eye is that it lives in the tropics and–"

"That's wrong."

Albus wanted to bury his head in his hands. He could just imagine a fiery dragon fight erupting between the two of them. He knew that Rose detested Scorpius, and he also knew that Scorpius was not fond of Rose at all, but couldn't she control herself in front of him this one time? She knew that Albus wanted to be friends with Scorpius, so he didn't understand why someone like her couldn't be civil.

"_Excuse me_?" The perfectly pronounced words left Scorpius' mouth with a trail of cattiness. He looked at her like she had offended him.

"You're wrong," she repeated, her tone making it clear that it was a statement. "The Black Eye Beetle isn't found in the tropics. It's found in the dry habitat of the Sahara desert."

"The Black Eyed Beetle, or the coleoptera ophthneris, is named for the black eye-like shape on its wings. The reason of its potency as a potion ingredient is due to its resilience to both high and low temperatures and its ability to acclimatise on whim. This is made clear when studying its habitat; the Black Eyed Beetle is found both in the heat and dry of the Tropics of Cancer _and_ the Sahara Desert." Scorpius recited the textbook perfect answer with an air of superiority. "If you had let me finish, Weasley, you would have heard my complete answer."

Rose blushed and glared at him in extreme dislike.

"I'd like an apology," Scorpius stated.

"_What?_" Rose spluttered.

"An apology," Scorpius repeated, "for being a rude and arrogant Gryffindor."

Albus frowned a little at the term of discrimination, while Rose's face grew redder with anger. Her eyes turned into slits as she glowered at him.

"I'm not apologising to a contemptuous and snobbish Slytherin like you, Malfoy."

"Why can't you just admit that you're wrong?"

"Why can't you just stop acting like your better than others?"

"I don't act like I'm better than others. What I do is not tolerate impoliteness and disrespect and when people behave in that way I tell them. Especially when they interfere with things that are none of their business."

"Well you should keep your mouth shut," Rose advised him, "but I suppose you can't expect that from a _Malfoy, _can you?"

As soon as the words left her mouth Albus' head snapped to Rose, looking at her like _how could you say that?_ He could tell by the way Rose's eyes widened slightly that she knew what damage she'd done and that she regretted it, even though he knew that she wouldn't admit it right away.

All emotion vanished from Scorpius' face and was replaced by a neutral look. He stood up and then pushed his chair in, leaning over the table to collect his books and papers, and put them in his bag. He didn't reply to her with a comment that attacked her last name or family, because he hadn't been raised like that and he kept on telling himself to _be the bigger person_.

"I'm sorry, Potter, I don't think we can work together." He said to Albus. With that he turned and left, walking out of the library, lip trembling as he went.

_Thank you for reading! _

_Alli xxxxx_ eHe H


End file.
